Irrigation devices are known which use fluid injected under pressure to remove ear wax, or cerumen, accumulated in an external ear canal. Examples of such irrigation devices are those disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,206,756 (Grossan), U.S. Pat. No. 5,364,343 (Apolet et al.), and U.S. Pat. No. 6,210,358 B1 (Roger).
Each of the known devices is intended to remove cerumen which has accumulated in the external ear canal. However, each of the known devices involves the possibility of damaging the ear drum, or tympanic membrane. This is because the known irrigation devices direct the fluid inwardly, and in the general direction of the tympanic membrane.
The risk of damage to the tympanic membrane is well known, and some of the known irrigation devices include features intended to decrease this risk. For example, the irrigation device disclosed in Apolet et al. projects fluid inwardly, but generally towards wall surfaces of the external ear canal, apparently in an attempt to limit the extent to which the projected fluid strikes the tympanic membrane. However, because the device disclosed in Apolet et al. is positioned generally at an outer end of the ear canal when the fluid is projected inwardly from the device, at least some of the fluid projected from the device washes against the tympanic membrane, and the possibility of damage still exists with this device. Also, the washing of injected fluid against the tympanic membrane can cause some discomfort for some patients.
Cerumen can be pushed inwardly into the external ear canal, for example, by a patient's finger. Cerumen can also become impacted, i.e., packed into the external ear canal. Because of the risk of damage to the tympanic membrane and other structures of the ear, accumulated cerumen, and impacted cerumen deposits in the external ear canal, should only be removed by a doctor. However, with each visit to a doctor, costs are incurred. As well, the time spent by patients in attending at doctors' offices to have cerumen removed is cumulatively significant.
There continues to be a need for an ear irrigation device for preventing the accumulation of cerumen in the external ear canal which can be used by a patient without professional assistance.